The threat of losing the Illawarra's rescue helicopter to Sydney had been very real, Kiama MP Gareth Ward said on Tuesday.
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"It was very serious, there's no doubt about that," Mr Ward said.
"We are in a very difficult position financially and, as a government we are now seeking to reduce waste, but this is not an example of waste, this is something that saves lives."
Mr Ward said he hoped that governments would "never again" seek to remove the service.
"I hope that governments of today and governments of the future accept the verdict of the people of the Illawarra loud and clear, that this is a service that is not to be touched.
"Yes, I'm part of the government, but I'm also from this region first and foremost and it was always going to be my focus."
The recommendation to remove the Albion Park chopper was part of an independent review by Ernst & Young and was one which could have saved millions from the health budget.
The retention of the chopper means those savings will have to be made elsewhere.
"That money will be found somewhere else, that's a matter for the minister," Mr Ward said.
"I'm just pleased that we've seen expansion and retention of local services."
Mr Ward was at the rescue helicopter base yesterday to formally announce what the Mercury reported exclusively last month - that the service would be staying in the Illawarra.
Mr Ward also said that Albion Park would benefit from improvements brought about by a "Reform Plan for Aeromedical (Rotary Wing) Retrieval Services in NSW".
"What I can confirm also is this service will continue to be a 24-hour service but what we're announcing today is that, right across the state, every service will have both a doctor and paramedic, or a doctor and a nurse on every flight.
"That includes a retrieval doctor available at all times at this base," Mr Ward said.
He said the government was also announcing extra funding to the tune of $39.1 million over three years for aeromedical services in NSW.
"That includes additional funding for this base and what we will be seeking to do here is improve facilities to bring the retrieval staff and the helicopters closer together to reduce the time delays in getting the craft off the ground."
At present, medical crews are located about 250 metres away from where the helicopter is hangared. It is understood that bringing the medical staff on base with the helicopter crew would improve response times by at least five minutes between receiving the initial call and taking off.
"There were already staff located here," Mr Ward said.
"The problem was that they were some distance away in terms of where the helicopter is.
"That was an issue in terms of preparing the helicopter and getting ready to go you want to be able to go from getting the call to getting off the ground as quickly as possible."
As part of the reforms, the Albion Park base will form part of a single "super region" for southern NSW.
The region also includes the helicopter bases at Orange, Bankstown and Westmead, all working together with the Canberra-based SouthCare.
There are also plans to streamline the fleet to two types of helicopters across the state. New helicopters will be phased in over time.
Mr Ward said the rescue helicopter's presence offered "a greater level of safety" for the region.
"To have the dedicated men and women here manning this service ready to assist, means that we have that extra level of protection we need in what is a very large region," he said.
